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The Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) has launched an “eGIRO” service that digitises the current paper-based process, enabling consumers and billing groups to set up GIRO instructions in real time.

Initially, eight banks are involved: Bank of China, DBS Bank/POSB, HSBC, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Maybank, OCBC Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and UOB Bank. 

In common parlance, a giro transfer is a method of transferring money by instructing a bank to transfer funds directly from one bank account to another without the use of physical checks.

Some 13 billing organisations, spanning sectors including wealth management, are also involved: Bank of China Credit Cards, Central Provident Fund Board, Diner’s Club, Etiqa Insurance Singapore, FWD Insurance – Singapore, GrabPay, Housing Development Board, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Credit Cards, iFast Corporation Limited, Singapore E-Business Pte Ltd, Singlife, Singtel Dash, and YouTrip.  

To illustrate the scale of the time saving, ABS said the existing GIRO application process takes three to four weeks to complete end-to-end. The rollout comes at a time when financial centres such as Singapore are competing to stress their prowess in digital technology.

“With the new eGIRO service, the creation and cancellation of GIRO instructions will be automated and there will be a significant reduction in turnaround time from around three weeks to mere minutes. It will also cut the consumption of paper-based documentation by around two million sheets per year, minimising errors due to human intervention. This truly transformative initiative is a contribution towards the Smart Nation drive and a push for greater adoption of digital transfers,” Ong-Ang Ai Boon, ABS director, said. 

The eGIRO service is built on application programming interface and cloud-based architecture, which will allow the solution to scale the needs of all banks and billing organisations in Singapore much more quickly, ABS said.

Anita Loh, chair of the eGIRO initiative and head of product and digitalisation, group transaction banking, UOB, said: “The new eGIRO service marks a new chapter in Singapore’s progress towards a truly digital economy. With payment setup and approval all done online, the previously manual paper process is now a digital, end-to-end and eco-friendly experience. For business users, they will also be able to benefit from greater operational efficiencies and streamlined workflows. This, in turn, extends their reach in e-commerce marketplaces through e-wallet top-ups and instant digital payment collections."